Need for speed keeps athletes running to ex-Buckeye Reggie Germany

 

 

By Felix Hoover

For Your News Columbus

Photo by Terry Gilliam

 

It’s not enough for Reggie Germany that he thinks of Ohio State University as “Receiver U.” and that he appreciates being part of that football tradition.

 

Nor is it enough that he played four years in the National Football League.

 

After playing wide receiver from 1997 to 2000 under former Buckeye Coach John Cooper and four seasons with the Buffalo Bills, Germany wants to prepare others for high-level competition in football and other sports.

 

After his time in the NFL, he returned to Columbus to play for the Destroyers on the Arena Football League under former OSU Coach Earle Bruce, and then to “get a real job.”

 

Since establishing Flash80Sportz, Germany. 32, has trained athletes from middle school to the pros to increase their speed, strength and endurance. He houses the business in the Soar of Columbus gym at Polaris.

 

Germany has trained at least 60 Division I athletes, but unlike college coaches, he doesn’t recruit.

 

“They seek me out, so they come to me understanding pretty much what I’m about,” he said.

 

The majority of Germany’s trainees are gridders, but he works with junior soccer players, basketball players, baseball players, softball players, BMX bikers, cheerleaders and others who want to improve their athletics skills.

 

Having run track, he also has training advice for young runners.

Germany, who has trained wide receivers from coast to coast, also works with players at that position as an instructor for the Football University, an invitation-only training camp for top athletes. FBU also puts on the annual U.S. Army All American Game.

 

At Flash80Sportz, Germany trains most of the athletes in groups of 10 or fewer, with sports-specific programs tailored to each competitor.

 

“I catch a lot of guys before they’re even on varsity,” he said.

On the other end of the spectrum, Germany offers training to elite athletes that team coaches might not have time for.

 

The idea is to get athletes to peak at the right time, so Germany coordinates running and lifting schedules with their schools to work, and not overwork, competitors in different parts of their given seasons.

 

Occasionally players come in with unrealistic expectations, but generally Germany encourages them to “achieve what they believe.”

 

Self-confidence helped him overcome detractors who said he wasn’t big enough or skilled enough to succeed as a receiver.

 

“I’ve proven a lot of people wrong,” Germany said.

 

What prospective clients must prove to him is that they’re dedicated to his program, which emphasizes mental preparation as well as physical development.

 

“I want you to be a student of the game, to understand every intricate part of whatever sport it is,” Germany said.

 

He became a student of football in Missouri, where he was an All-American prep player at Hazelwood East High School. By the end of  his final season at OSU, John Cooper’s last season as head coach of the Buckeyes, Germany had hauled in enough passes to still rank 11^th among OSU receivers.

 

He acknowledges that speed helps an athlete, but it’s not the only thing necessary to succeed in sports.

 

Germany said he had decent speed in his track days, but not enough to challenge world-record sprinter Usain Bolt. Things might be different, however, if Bolt were to play defense against Germany.

 

“If he had to guard me, I know he’s shaking then,” Germany said.